Prune-treating machine



A. HILFIKER.

PRUNE TREATING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT- 12, 1919.

1,346,315. PatentedJu1y 13,1920.

3 SHEE1SSHEEI I.

F Gr'Z If M ri iZn ease a A. HILFIKER.

PRUNETREATING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 12. [919.

1,346,315. I v Patented July 13,1920.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2 2.1: e, 4. 4 46' NJ ZAY? A. HILHKER.

PRUNE TRqEATING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT-12,1919.

1,346, 3 1 5 Patented July 13, 1920.

UNI TE!) .5 T A AUGUST 'HILFI'KEB,

rarsnr QFHCE.

"or eaten, unseen.

P RU NE TREATING Marci-LINE.

' Application filed September To all whom itmay concern:

Be it known that I, AUGUST l-Irnnusnn, a citizen of the United States, residing Salem, in the county of Marion, State cit Oregon, have invented-certain new and useful Improvements in Prune-Treating Machines; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact descr ption of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which itap-pertains to make and use the same.

This invention may be said to relate shaking trays for drying fruit, although t includes in its construction washing and rinsing means which render the drying desirable. More particul-arly the machine -1S employed in the treatment of prunes whose drying, after they are washed, takes place on trays whereon it is deslrahlc to spread the prunes accurately ina srngle layer, although I reserve the right to nse the machine for any purpose of which '1t 1s susce tihle. Details are set torthan the following specificaticnl and claims, and refer ence is made to the drawings wherein Figure .1 is a left sideelevation,

Fig. 2 a central longitudinal section,

Fig. 3 a plan View, 7

Fig. at a right side elevation, Fig. 5 a transverse vertlcal section through the heateron the line 5-5 01 F-1g,1, Fig. 6 a transverse section on the line 6-6 oil Fig. 1.

This machine comprises as its principal elements a heater at its rear end, and'if the machine be employed in certain arts the heating process could be'extended to the point of cooking the fruit or other artlcles treated; a pan hanging normally within the heater but capable *oi movement to carry the articles therefrom into a tank or tub which may contain water or other l quid for washing or rinsing the heated articles, or in some cases for cooling them; an elevator so constructed that the articles are arr-ied upward and forward out of the tank in a single stratum and in orderly rows across the machine, and from w h-i ch elevator they are delivered to a tray; a shakingsupport :lorholding this tray and giring it the proper vibration to receive thea-ritioles from the elevator and spread them out upon it in a single stratum, and from which shaking support the tray can be removed when full and replaced by another; and themech- Specification of' lietterslate'nt. Patented J11 1y 12. 1919. Serial No. 323,239.

anisnl for actuating andcont'rolling the several elements. The machine'is so constructed that an operator stands at the front end thereof where he can remove the filled tray and replace it with another one, and from which point he can control the action of parts, while an attendant at the rear end of the machine has charge of the heater and will fill thepan from time to time; although on small plants it is possible that one operator may perform both functions.

The heater as herein shown comprises a fire box 1 above a grate 2,-and an ash pit 3 .beneath said .grate. A tank stands above thelire box and preferably contains heads 5 connected by fines (lso that the heatingof the water in the tank is thorough. A pan 7 is hinged at 8 and has a perforated bot- .tom whichhangs normally within the tank, permitting the prunes "or other articles to be submerged in the water as will be clear; and a rope9 leads from the tree edge' 'of the pan-upward over pulleys and torward to within reach of the operator standing at the front of the machine. This description of the heater applies to what is shown in the drawings, although -01" course any appro- ,priate heater might be employed. i prefer, however, that the pan have means for damping the heated articles from the the tub described below, and that ing action be controlled from the frontend or side of the machine.

Supported in a suitable frame 10 is a tank or tab 11 which is preferably of metal and has its bottom 12 inclined upwardly and forwardly, and appropriate pipes (not shown) will be provided for admit'ting cold and fresh Water and replacing it from time to time when necessary. The frame maybe a separate structure standing adjacent the brickwork or masonry of the heater but this detail is unimportant. Pivotally mounted at its lower end withinthe tub is the trains 13 o l an elevator leading upward over said bottom, and by preference the elevator is composed of upper and 'lower shafts 14: and 15. carrying sprocket wheels- ?EG over which run a pair of endless chains 17, the latter carrying brackets 18. These are preferably of L -shaped cross section as seen in F ig. 2, their inner leaves underlying the prunes'and their outstanding leaves heingspaced from each other a distance to admit only one row of such prunes so that snrplus'iprunes roll the dumptank into 1 25 supported a perforated or reticulated tray back into the tub against a strip 19 fixed across its rear lowercorner. Therefore the elevator automatically selects and carries upward a single stratum of prunes.

Hingedly mounted withinthe frame 10' under the delivery end of the elevator is an apron or lip 20 onto which falltheprnnes carrled up by the elevator. "Secured within the lower part of the frame and extend ing well under this lip is a pan 21 for catchmg the drlpplngs, and this pan will have an outlet at an appropriate point not necessarily shown Across the drip pan are fired two rods 22 and 23, from theformer of which use links 24 and from the latterof which rise other links 25, these preferably turn being adjustable in length by means of buckles 26 or other appropriate means. The upper ends of the hnks are connected in pairs by rods'27 and 28 respectively, said 32. A link 33 leads from one of said rods 28 and connects with a-crank 34 on the main shaft 35, said shaft having a pulley 36 connected by a belt 37 with the'power pulley 38which is rotated by'belting as indicated at 39. Therefore when the main shaft is rotated, the shaker frame 29is reciprocated back and forth, the links 24 and 25 supporting it above the pan 21, and the adjustability of the links 25 permitting the shaker frame and therefore the tray within it to be set level or to be inclined slightly as desired.

Intermeshmg gears 40 and 41 connect the main shaft 35 witha countershaft 42 journaled through the frame 10, and a small gear 43 on one end oflthis shaft engages a large gear 44 on the correspond-ingend of the upper shaft 14 of the elevator, whereby motion is transmitted from the power shaft thereto. Said shaft 14 rests in open bearings 45 at the top of the frame 10, and ad jacent that end which'carries the gear 44 a. lever 46 is pivoted to thefframe as best seen in'Fig. 4. By preference this is a'bellcrank lever, its short arm carrying a yoke 47 underlying the shaft,and its long arm I being connected by a link 48 with a hand lever 49 pivoted to the frame 10 adjacent the front end thereof. 'By movement of i this hand: lever the bell-crank lever'46 is rocked on its pivot and theyoke 47 raises this end of the shaft 14 in the open bearing :45 so that its gear 44 is lifted out ofm'esh with the gear 43 and movement of the'elevator interrupted while the hand lever is held, without necessarily stopping the movement of the main shaft and the vibration of the shaker. A spring'50 normally movement of forward. 7 The front end of this tongue is connected by a link54 with a crank 56 on a rock shaft 57 mounted in bearings across the front end of themain frame, and a hand lever59 rises from the shaft 57 within convenient reach of the operator. 7 This constitutes one means for loosening the belt 37 connecting the power pulley 38 with the pulley 36 on the countershaft, audit will be obvious that by drawing on the hand lever 59Ithe frame 51 and power shaft are raised so that the rotation of thelatter is not interrupted but-it i s-not communicated to the countershaft while the hand lever is so held.

By' this means it will be obvious that the of the shaker 29 and the V the elevator can "both be checked without stopping the rotation of the power shaft or disconnecting the machine from the motor. Therefore the operator standing in front of this machine reciprocation has control through thelever 49 of the movement of the elevator, or through the lever 59 of the movement of both the shaker and the elevator.

v t is obvious that 'he would not care to interrupt the movement of "the shakerand permit the elevatorto continue its function. V

From'tiine to time a charge of prunes or other articles to be treated is placed within the heating tank 4, with'the result that the articles are heated or cleansed, or perhaps in some cases cooked. Drawing on the rope 9 raises the pan on its hinge 8 and dumps its contents into the tub 11 which latter'contains water to rinse the prunes or articles, and probably'cold water for the purpose of cooling them. Movement of' the elevator now causes its; scrapers to successively engage single rows of prunes at the bottom of the tub, which rows are drawn upward over the bottom plate 12 and delivered one by one onto the lip 20. The latter drops the prunes onto the lip 30 which is vibrating with the shaker frame 29, and this lip in turn, drops thefruit onto the tray which also is moving with the frame; and the movement of the latter and the adjustment of the tray cause the fruit to be spread out over the surface of the trayin a single stratum. Meanwhile the water thereon drips through "the screen bottom of the tray into the pan 21, and is carried ofi' to waste as will be understood."

The operator standing at the front end of the machine has full control over the various elements as already explained, while an attendant from time to time replenishes the charge of prunes in the'pan 7 but, if the machine is not too large, the single operator can leave his place in front and himself'replenish the pan after each dumping. T he rope is so attached to the front end of the pan that it turns the same over its hinge to dumping position, while the next pull on the rope turns it back and drops it into the tank 4;.

What is claimed is:

1. In a machine of the type described, the combination with an elevator of a fixed pan underlying the delivery end of said elevator, cross rods therein, links rising from the rods in pairs, a shaker frame having cross rods carried by the upper ends of the links, means on the frame for holding a receptacle into which said elevator delivers, means for adjusting the length of one pair of links, and driving and controlling mechanisms for the elevator and shaker.

2, in a machine of the type described, the 4 combination with a tank, and elevating means leading upward from said tank; of a lip under the delivery end. of said elevator, a lined drip pan beneath the lip, a frame morably supported above said pan and hav ing a second lip underlying the first, a strainer tray in said frame above the pan and ex 'mding under the second lip, means for driving the elevator and for agitating the frame, and controls for said means.

3. in a machine of the type described, the combination with a heater, a pan hinged thereon and adapted to drop into the heater or to be turned outward on its hinges to dumping position, a cooling tank into which said pan dumps, and elevating means lead ing upward from said tank; of a lip under the delivery end of said elevator, a pan fixed beneath the lip, a shaker frame movably supported above said pan and having a second lip underlying the first, cleats in said frame for supporting a receptacle under the second lip, means for driving the elevator and for reciprocating the shaker frame, and controls for said means.

at. In a machine of the class described, the combination with an elevator, and a powerdriven shaft having a gear, the upper shaft of the elevator restingin open bearings and having a gear meshing with that named;

of a bell-crank lever pivoted at its angle, a yoke connected with one arm and underlying the elevator shaft, and a hand lever connected with the other arm of the bellcranl lever, for the purpose set forth.

5. In a machine of the type described, an elevator, a shaker frame carrying a receptacle to which said elevator delivers, a crank shaft having its crank connected with said frame for shaking the latter, a hinged frame, a power shaft therein, pulleys on the power shaft and crank shaft, a belt connecting the said pulleys, and manually operable means for swinging the frame to loosen the belt. 7

6. In a machine of the type described, the combination with atank, and elevating means leading upward from said tank; of a lip under the delivery end of said elevator, a pan fixed beneath the lip, a shaker frame movably supported above said pan and having a second lip underlying the first, said frame supporting a receptacle under the second lip, means for driving the elevator and for reciprocating the shaker frame and independent controls for said means.

In testimony whereof I aliix my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

AUGUST HILFIKER.

Witnesses RALPH S. HOWARD, WILLIS SUMNER. 

